CD reviews

If anyone has any idea why it took Charlie Daniels so long to get mainstream respect from the country establishment, please speak now. By the time he was invited as a member of the Grand Old Opry, in 2007, he had been in the business nearly 50 years. 2016 - the year in which he turns 80 - saw Daniels finally inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. Yet few country artists have managed the crossover success of a "The Devil Went Down to Georgia" (way back in 1979). »»»

In November 1980, Charlie Daniels and his eponymous band were riding a wave of popularity brought on by the April 1979 release of the "Million Mile Reflections" album, which included the chart-topping hit The Devil Went Down To Georgia, and the July 1980 release of the also popular "Full Moon." Therefore, it is no surprise that the band, known for its hard-charging mix of country, bluegrass and southern rock and its high-energy live performances, was tapped by the West German »»»

Charlie Daniels has recorded what he calls a bluegrass Christmas CD, although he isn't so exclusive that there are only bluegrass folks helping him out. His friends also include country singer Aaron Tippin (Christmas Time Down South) and folksinger Jewel (Blue Christmas).
Daniels also made sure everybody knows full well that this is a Southern Christmas music collection. Song titles include Christmas Time Down South, Mississippi Christmas and A Carolina Christmas Carol. »»»

Editorial: Walking the talk –
When names like Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, Waylon and the Hag are invoked, you're talking hard core country. These are the touchstones of country , the guys who made country music what it was and still is (or maybe can be). When these folks would sing about being down-and-out and the rough-and-tumble, they knew of what they were singing about. Fast forward a few years to the country singers of today. »»»

Concert Review: Pistol Annies hit the targets –
Pistol Annies, the all-star trio comprised of Miranda Lambert, Ashley Monroe and Angaleena Presley, made the last stop of its short tour a downtown Los Angeles date. This was the last show, that is, until after the pregnant Presley gives birth to her child. Traveling in support of the act's third album "Interstate Gospel," these talented... »»»

Concert Review: Williams brings the joy back –
It's not as if Lucinda Williams has been idle. Far from it this year, but 20 years on, Williams decided to trot out her masterpiece "Car Wheels on a Gravel Road" as the centerpiece of her tour. Music and artist have held up exceedingly well.
Williams had always been a well thought of performer, although she was not too big when it came... »»»

Suffice it to say that the past has always loomed large throughout Chip Taylor's career. That's all the more obvious if only for the fact that Taylor wrote some of the biggest pop hits of the '60s, "Wild Thing"... »»»

Dan Tyminski (known simply as "Tyminski" on his 2017 release "Southern Gothic") has traditional music roots and unassailable bluegrass street cred especially given his membership in Alison Krauss' Union Station. He is also a powerful songwriter and has been writing songs for himself and others for years now.... »»»

Bela Fleck and Abigail Washburn have powerhouse individual talents; each has followed an estimable career path to where they find themselves today: making complex, but spare, records, writing music together and touring with their son Juno. Their new release, "Echoes In The Valley" features mostly songs written by Fleck and Washburn, banjos, Washburn's strong vocals and very little else.... »»»

Rodney Crowell's "Christmas Everywhere" is a (mostly) melancholy collection of songs, with Christmas time as its setting. It's a strong set of carefully worded tunes, set to widely varying musical backings. »»»

Songwriters Vanessa Olivarez and Elizabeth Elkins form the duo Granville Automatic, the name borrowed from a 19th Century typewriter. And, as you might guess, leaning on a name like that, they love to write about history. »»»

Blackberry Smoke's "The Southern Ground Sessions" EP is five versions of songs from the band's recent "Find a Light" album, along with a cover of Tom Petty's "You Got Lucky," which also features vocalist/violinist Amanda Shires. »»»

Jason Isbell didn't record this live effort at The Ryman Auditorium as a gesture to be country music's savior at The Mother Church of Country Music. The Alabama native's music is country-adjacent at best, more than it is traditional »»»